The Lost Tales of Avatar
by Terra Bird
Summary: These are the lost tales of Avatar the Last Airbender. Just a series of short stories that don't go together or follow each other in any specific pattern. Some points in the actual TV series may come up and moments from it as well.
1. Days With The Fan Girls

The Lost Tales of Avatar

_1_

_Days with the Fan Girls_

Aang's first moments in the Kyoshi village were mesmerizing. He stared up at the tall statue of his past life, the Avatar Kyoshi. The way the statue towered over the village... It gave off a regal yet comforting vibe.  
The airbender gazed around the village. Children played together, chasing each other around the square. Adults traded goods at stands bordering the area. Aang smiled at the peaceful air hanging over the village. The Fire Nation had ruined many places, but this one still stood. It was almost as though the war had never existed.  
After meeting many people in the village, the Avatar and his two Water Tribe companions settled into a place to stay for a few days. Noticing one morning, as he leaned out the window, a few young girls corralled below the building. They called up to him and Aang waved in reply.  
Aang thought this was just a one time thing, where the girls were just happy to see the Avatar alive and well. But they returned the next morning to greet him, a few more girls added to the gathering.  
The airbender stepped outside of the dwelling that morning to meet the hopeful faces of even more young girls. He sheepishly smiled as they asked where he was going.  
"I'm going to see if I can help gather supplies for our next trip," Aang replied, referring to him and his companions. One of the older looking girls gazed up at him with loving eyes. "We all think it's really cool that you were once our beloved Kyoshi." The other girls nodded. Aang smiled awkwardly. "I suppose that _is_ pretty cool..."  
The older girl interrupted him. "Would you show us some of your bending?" She more bashfully added "We've never met an airbender before, and it would be really fun to see you do some."  
Aang, shocked by all the praise, blinked a few times, before smiling kindly. "Sure, I'll show you some airbending. Follow me," he added as he began to walk off.  
The girls turned to each other excitedly, then skipped after the Avatar giggling.

The posse came to a few bunched, grassy hills just beyond the Kyoshi village. All of the young girls sat together in a semi-circle as the Avatar began to give a history lesson of the origin of airbending. The girls showed no lack of interest, wide eyes staring up at Aang as he explained how Sky Bison were the original benders of the free, elusive element of air.  
After explaining all about his tattoos and the resemblance they held to the markings of a Sky Bison, a younger girl spoke up. "Are you really the youngest of your people to ever earn their tattoos?" She asked eagerly. Before the young Avatar could answer, another girl spoke up. "What kind of fruit pies did you throw at the elder monks with Gyatso?" Soon, flurries of questions were hurled his way.  
"How did you make pie _100 years ago_?" "What was your favorite flavor?" "Did all air nomads get pet Sky Bison?" "Did they have bathrooms back then?" "How would you go to the bathroom?" "What other kinds of animals lived near the air temples?"  
"_Enough!_" He shouted in desperation. "_Please_," Aang continued more softly, fearing he had startled the children. "Not so many questions! And what makes you think we didn't have bathrooms back then?" The Avatar continued curiously.  
"Politics!" A girl called way too enthusiastically. Aang didn't know what that had to do with anything, but he shook his head and stared at each girl. "Anyways," he started carefully. "That is how the Sky Bison taught the air nomads to airbend. _Now_," the monk strained his words. "Are there any questions?" All the hands shot up into the air. Aang sighed. This was going to be difficult.

The girls followed Aang everywhere he went. The Avatar showed them the wonder of his core element. He showed them soft breezes and mini tornadoes he could fit in his palm. He even showed them his invention, the air scooter. They showed him around the village and the immediate vicinity. Avatar Aang's fan club was growing by the hour.  
The next day, early in the morning, Katara approached Aang. They discussed his fan girls, Aang totally oblivious to Katara's hurt and slightly jealous feelings. He assured her he wouldn't let the attention get to his head. This, of course, was merely a passive comment, completely forgotten when he went to show the girls his abilities that day. This day, Aang had planned a special stunt. The Unagi. He was going to ride the beast, show the girls something he had mainly hoped would attract Katara, who'd he'd fought with over this extra attention, to come set him straight at the very least.  
As the late morning sun drifted amongst the clouds, a girl called out from the shore, asking the the Avatar, currently treading water in the bay, how long it would be for the Unagi to show. Nervous about disappointing his fans, he replied that he was sure it would show soon. However, the girls soon bored and left him. Sadly, the Avatar realized how he'd messed up. He wished Katara would come. He was sorry he had let all of the attention get to his head. He heard someone call his name, and, with a joyful glance upwards, he spotted her on the shore, calling to him.  
_At least I have the one person who really cares about me, not my abilities. _Aang smiled to himself.


	2. The Days Before

The Lost Tales of Avatar

_2_

_The Days Before_

Jet sounded the call for breakfast, and kids of all ages huddled around for their meals. Jet and his elite Freedom Fighters, Longshot, Smellerbee, Pipsqueak, The Duke, and Sneers, help to pass out the rations.  
Even though autumn had come, the children in the trees were pretty well off. Although most of the mongoose-geese had flown south for the coming seasons, a good amount had stayed behind, due to weakness or age. These made easy pickings, especially for the archer of the group, Longshot.  
Jet stood from his place at the table. "Today," he started. "We can all thank Longshot for this meal. He has supplied us with enough food for more than just today!" Jet announced with pride. Longshot smiled inwardly from his spot on Jet's left.  
"Also," the leader continued. "I would like to meet with all those assigned scouting duty this morning after breakfast."  
As Jet sat down, everyone began chatting and eating. From her spot at Longshot's left, Smellerbee began stabbing at her mongoose-goose with a thick dagger violently. Longshot have her a look.  
"What?" Smellerbee looked up at him, confused.  
_Why are you stabbing your food?_ His look told her.  
"Just enjoying the sweet, _sweet_ sound of the blade piercing the meat." The girl smiled enthusiastically, continuing to stab the meat.  
Longshot rolled his eyes and nudged her. Finally, Smellerbee grumbled incoherently and tore a piece off with her knife, sticking it in her mouth.  
The Duke sat on Pipsqueak's shoulders, Pipsqueak passing his food up to him as they both wolfed down their food with their hands. Sneers sat on Jet's right, also eating his food as if he would never eat again.

After breakfast, Jet met up with Smellerbee, Pipsqueak, and four other younger kids. "Alright," Jet began. "So today I want you guys to check the perimeter of the forest; previous scouting troops reported possible Fire Nation sightings near the village nearby. We need to make sure they don't delve any deeper into the forest, and try to stop them from conquering the village. I just want you six to give me a status report. Got it?"  
The group of six nodded. "Good." Jet replied. "Be back before the call for lunch."  
The six kids set off, Smellerbee and another small kid hopping from tree to tree, keeping a lookout from above as the other four others traveled along the ground. About what they estimated to be an hour later, Pipsqueak stopped the group. Smellerbee and the boy froze in the trees, the bright crimson leaves only slightly rustling.  
"Someone's coming!" A young boy on the ground whispered harshly. As Pipsqueak and the three other grounded kids climbed up to low spots in the trees, Smellerbee and the boy climbed higher, into the leaves. Smellerbee stared down at the ground through the leaves, trying to identify a Fire Nation soldier. However, the person who came through was an old, Earth Kingdom woman.  
"False alarm," she breathed. The woman hummed happily as she walked away, further into the woods.

Back at the Hideout, things were boring. The Duke had tried to play with Sneers after Longshot had left to hunt more, but Sneers just pushed the kid away and went back to grumbling and staring at the maps of the forest.  
The Duke frowned and walked away to find something to do. Suddenly, he heard the familiar sound of rope moving through a pulley. He leaned over the edge of the platform and spotted Jet, back from his meeting with the scouts. Jet hopped up onto the platform.  
"Hey, The Duke, what are you doing here?" Jet asked the younger kid. The Duke just shrugged. "I don't really have anything to do at the moment; Pipsqueak's out scouting with Smellerbee, Longshot went hunting, and Sneers is reading some old, crumbly map." He sighed.  
Jet thought for a moment. He knew life wasn't always 'fun fun fun in the sun', and so did The Duke, but Jet knew that at a young age, it was important to keep this kid away from pondering in his own thoughts and memories. For a Freedom Fighter, not only would it be boring, but excruciatingly painful as well.  
Jet sighed. "I suppose it's been a while since you were out of the hideout." He started. "So why don't you go find Longshot and help him hunt? He shouldn't really be out alone anyways." Jet added more sternly.  
The Duke's face lit up. "Cool! I'll go get my slingshot!" The kid turned and ran across a bridge to the treehouse he shared with Pipsqueak and Sneers. He rustled through his belongings, which didn't take very long considering the small amount of belongings he actually owned, and pulled out his slingshot. Rushing back to the main platform, he slid down a rope and went off to track Longshot.

Pipsqueak glanced up at Smellerbee, catching her eye. He nodded and saw her turn to tell the other boy. Pipsqueak turned to his three companions and told them they could get moving.  
It wasn't long until the group arrived at the edge of the forest. The kids hid silently, concealing themselves within the foliage surrounding the area. The clearing they had met wasn't the very edge of the forest, but it was close enough to the Earth Kingdom village to make them uncomfortable. Smellerbee and Pipsqueak shared a look that obviously stated concern. No doubt why, since the Fire Nation soldiers were set up just feet away from where the group of six hid. Pipsqueak noticed Smellerbee reaching for a dagger, but he grabbed her wrist and she shot him a glare.  
"Remember what Jet said," he whispered. "He only wants a status report." Smellerbee nodded reluctantly and moved her hand back to it's previous position, propping her up.  
Pipsqueak stared out at the soldiers, lazily waiting around their camp. He heard one talking.  
"How much longer are we going to have to wait for the reinforcements to come in?" He complained loudly in a gruff voice.  
Another guard replied. "The General said it may be around three days, shortest." This voice sounded more feminine.  
The first guard groaned. "We've been here for four days already; I'm starting to wonder why we even bother with this tiny town."  
The second guard slapped him upside the head. "Ow!" He cried indignantly.  
The second guard ignored him. "Don't you listen at all in the seminars? Every small village we conquer leads up to the bigger picture-" Pipsqueak's eyes widened. "Control of Ba-Sing-Se."  
The first guard nodded and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, I know, but why can't we just head straight to Ba-Sing-Se? I mean we could find away around the walls somehow..." Pipsqueak stopped listening As Smellerbee tapped him on the shoulder. "Come on, we should go." She said quietly in her raspy voice.  
Pipsqueak nodded and motioned for the rest of the kids to follow. The scouts headed back to inform Jet of the news.

The Duke began tracking Longshot as soon as he hopped off of the rope. He found slight indents in the dusty dirt leading a bit northeast. Following them, he noticed the steps became deeper and more defined. He heard a sloshing sound and turned to discover his foot kicking up wet mud. He heard running water nearby, so he pulled out his slingshot.  
A few Turkey-Hen began squabbling about at a river's edge, swiftly dipping their heads to scoop up water. The Duke brightened at the sight. Digging around in the mud next to him, he found a thumb-sized, pointed rock. Positioning it on his slingshot, The Duke aimed the rock at the birds when suddenly-  
_Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!_  
Three Turkey-Hen collapsed as arrows pierced their eyes and ran through their skulls. The rest began clucking and hopping about in a mad dash to get away.  
_Thunk! Thunk! _  
Two more of the fowl fall, and the rest take off down the hill. One of the fallen Turkey-Hen slides into the river and is lost in the torrent.  
The Duke looks up as a figure hops out of a tree. The figure sighs visibly and begins to pluck the arrows off of the birds.  
The Duke hopped out of his bush. "Longshot!" He called to the silent archer.  
Longshot glances up, surprised to see the young Freedom Fighter here. He gives him a questioning glance, which gets him a confused stare. "I can't read your expressions like Jet or Smellerbee," The Duke started. "So I'm going to need you to translate.  
Longshot sighed again, then gave him the same glance and pointing at the kid. The Duke seemed to get the message. "Oh, well Jet sent me to find you after you left to come and accompany you. You know we're not supposed to leave the hideout alone unless Jet has given you permission under some form of emergency." He chastised. "Anyway," The Duke continued happily. "He told me I could come hunt with you. If that's ok..." He added at the end, glancing hopefully up at Longshot. The archer only nodded, but that didn't stop a wide grin from spreading across The Duke's face.

Sneers stared down at the map. He observed the shape of the dam blocking the main river, then tried to estimate its size. The boy didn't notice Jet walking up to him until the leader spoke. "Any information?" He asked. Sneers glanced up, then stared back down at the map. "The dam seems to block the river about twenty feet above the level of the village. The slight curve of its shape gives it the ability to hold more water, which can make the plan difficult." Jet nodded. He had seen the dam in person. It was very big.  
"It is arguably as tall as some of our trees, and just as thick as its diameter." Sneers continued. "It's maybe twice as long." He finished, not looking up from the map. Jet sighed. This may be a bit harder than he'd hoped. Just then, he heard the sounds of the ropes again, and turned to meet the morning scouts. The leader didn't like the looks on their faces.

The Duke aimed his slingshot at the Tiger-Squirrel, the small creature fluffing out its black and orange pelt, tail waving and billowing wildly. Finally, The Duke released his slingshot, and the rock clattered against tree bark as the squirrel shot out of the way, just in time. "Drat!" He cursed, folding his arms tightly. Longshot put a reassuring hand on the younger boy's shoulder, then pointed up at the sun.  
The Duke glanced up, squinting at the harsh light of the sun. He understood. "Almost midday," he commented, sliding of the tree they sat so precariously in. Longshot hopped off too, heading over to the river bank to collect his prey. The Duke helped, picking up one Turkey-Hen as Longshot picked up the other three. They headed back towards the hideout, snatching a rope. As they zoomed upwards, feathers tickled the skin of the younger Freedom Fighter, causing him to laugh slightly. He hopped off of the rope after Longshot and the two made their way to the dining platform to skin and gut their catch.

"Three days?" Jet asked, shocked. Smellerbee confirmed him. "Yeah, then the reinforcements will be here. We don't know how many, but it may be a good idea to take some of the guys out before then."  
Pipsqueak joined in. "They also said something about their overall plan being to take over Ba-Sing-Se." His deep, thick voice matched the muscular young man quite well. As good as it felt to be able to tower over your enemy, he was always very humble. He never spoke out, stating things that could be found rude, annoying, or self-indulged. His best friend, The Duke, was a perfect match to his companion, small and younger, more nimble than strong, and not afraid to brag a little. Everyone knew Sneers, their annoying roommate, was known for his snide remarks and retorts.  
Jet grimaced. "Then, at most, that gives us two days to take out- what, 20 guys?"  
Smellerbee nodded solemnly. The leader thought, then shrugged slightly. "I suppose twenty isn't that big of a number." Glancing up at the sky, he said "I'll sound the call for lunch, you guys get headed over there. I've got an announcement to make."

After thoroughly cleaning the creatures, Longshot and The Duke examines the specimens in satisfaction. "It's too bad that one slid down the river." The Duke announced, sadly staring at the ground.  
That's when Pipsqueak, Smellerbee, and Sneers came from the bridge, a few kids trailing behind. Longshot heard Jet call for dinner, and the sizzle of ropes burning as kids all around the trees came zip-lining and hopping in. Smellerbee noticed the fowl behind the two boys. She pulled out a long, thin, pointed dagger from her belt. "Need some help with that?" She asked. Longshot nodded and brought her over to the Turkey-Hen. Smellerbee began to slice even prices off of the creatures quickly, a little bit of blood that hadn't fully washed away rubbing off on her hands. Putting the knife in her teeth, Smellerbee tossed the meat into an old metal pot. She covers the pot and turns to the rest of us.  
"That's a nice catch, Longshot." Pipsqueak commented. The archer nodded, then glanced at The Duke. He gave Smellerbee a look to translate.  
"The Duke helped too." The Freedom Fighter translated, staring over at the young companion. The Duke smiled happily at the recognition, but then replied that Longshot had been the one to make the kill. Longshot have Bee another look.  
"Longshot says that you spotted 'em first, The Duke, and that he didn't notice you were going after them. Therefore, it's both of your catch."  
No matter how many times it happened, the others were always surprised at how well Longshot and Smellerbee communicated without words. It was a gift, one that Jet had and few other kids that lived in the hideout. One most would never understand.  
Sneers smirked. No one payed him any attention, though.

Everyone sat down somewhere to eat, wether it be at the table or in the trees, everyone was there. And Jet had his special announcement prepared.  
Everyone went quiet as he stood, staring out at the gathered kids. He cleared his throat. "As you all may have heard from the rumors floating around," he started confidently. "The Fire Nation has once again infiltrated our forest." There was a collective gasp. "Lucky for us," the leader continued. "We now know for sure. Now. We have two days before their backup comes in, and we need to be sure that we can take 'em all. We don't want to suddenly have a hundred soldiers vs. six elite fighters. Even for us that's dangerous. I will send scouts to keep an eye out for the backup, meanwhile I want everyone to learn some basic slingshot fighting. The Duke," he said, gesturing to his younger friend. "Will be happy to teach you. He's the best there is when it comes to using that kind of weapon. Everyone, with the exception of night watch, needs to get to sleep either on or before curfew.  
"Also, we have a very exciting mission coming up, which will also help a lot more since the 'backup' will be coming. After filling the reservoir to the brim with water, we are going to blow the dam to pieces, flooding the village and riding this place of Fire Nation Scum once and for all!" His voice had risen during the speech, a fist pumping in the air. "Finally, this part of the war will be over!" Cheers rose from the young children all around, all pleased with the idea of no more Fire Nation.  
But the other Freedom Fighters shared looks. Even Sneers looked uncertain. The five of them knew that if they blew that dam, not only would the Fire Nation be eliminated, but the Earth Kingdom as well.

The rest of the day past uneventfully. Soon it was evening, and most of the kids were asleep in their tree houses. All except the night watch. This consisted of at least six kids, just like the scouting groups. Smellerbee, The Duke, and four other kids stood night watch. Smellerbee and The Duke guarded the North, while the Southeast and Southwest were guarded by the others. Smellerbee could just make out the sounds of joyous singing and drunken soldiers, strumming pointlessly on stringed instruments. She grew irritated very quickly, and calmed herself by stabbing a dagger into the wooden rail that she and The Duke leaned on. The Duke jumped, startled.  
"_Geez_, Smellerbee! That came out of nowhere!" He quietly protested.  
Smellerbee growled quietly. "It's those duck-moused brained soldiers that sing the night away! Not only is it a truly terrible sound, it's probably keeping everyone else up!"  
The Duke realized she was right. He could hear the terrible singing and the shifting of kids in their tree houses as they tried to ignore it.  
The Duke looked up at Smellerbee. He smiled. He always thought of her as the big sister he never got to have.  
He sighed as he realized their breath was becoming visible. He shivered slightly.  
Smellerbee smiled almost creepily. "At least we know that they are completely oblivious to the fact that in about a day and a half they will be subjects of severe manslaughter."  
To this, The Duke only nodded, as if blood thirst was something he dealt with every day. Which, considering his situation, wasn't a completely invalid argument.

Hours later, the singing stopped, and the moon was set high in the sky. "Midnight," Smellerbee announced as she heard the other groups set at night watch start to murmur and shift elsewhere. The Duke yawned. He said goodnight to Smellerbee and went to get Sneers for his turn on watch. Smellerbee echoed him and went to get Longshot.

The next morning, things were quiet, until Jet sounded the breakfast call and suddenly everyone was eating yesterday's Turkey-Hen fillet.  
Smellerbee went through her traditional stabbing ritual again and Longshot continued to pretend to be the mature one.  
The Duke sat next to Pipsqueak today and they ate the meat and some extra leeche nuts.  
Sneers ate from his place, quickly consuming it.  
Jet ate like a normal human being might, slowly having bits of conversation here and there.  
There was no breakfast announcement. Everyone knew what needed to be done. The Duke began giving his slingshot lessons, with a little help from safety monitor Pipsqueak of course.  
Sneers and Smellerbee were sparring, Longshot watching off to the side, his long distance weapon not the most useful thing in close combat.  
Jet continued to make plans in his tree house, studying maps and paintings of the dam to try to get a better image of it.

"Now, lefties raise your left hand, righties your right. Grab the stone place in the slingshot, aim, pull back," The Duke shot the rock. "And fire! You guys try at your targets."  
Pipsqueak separated two kids who thought each other were targets and showed them the real ones.  
The Duke grinned as he heard the satisfying Thunk thunk thunk! Of the rocks hitting the red and white wooden targets hung on the trees. "Yeah! That's it!"

Sneers swung a thin blade towards Smellerbee's left side, and she easily blocked with a more curved dagger. She tried to trip the larger fighter with a swift slide of a foot, but his heavier weight kept him upright. He stepped back as Bee stepped forward, ruthlessly swinging her blade at him. Sneers stepped his right foot back, but stood his ground. He shoved the hilt of his weapon into Smellerbee's side, and she tightened her grip on her knife. As Sneers pulled his knife back towards himself, she hooked the curved blade over the dagger and unarmed her foe.  
Sneers grunted and took another step back. Both regained a casual stance as Smellerbee handed him his dagger and put hers away. Longshot came over from his spot in the tree. He raised a hand victoriously over Smellerbee's head, and it wouldn't take a translator to understand what Longshot meant. However, Smellerbee answered anyway. "I win." She announced smugly. "I'd say that makes four to zero." Sneers glared at her. "Care to go again?" She challenged.  
Sneers readied his blade. "Ready when you are."

Pipsqueak and The Duke, having finished with the basic training and left their pupils to their own devices, walked about the hideout.  
"Let's go gather some ammunition for the slingshots," The Duke suggested suddenly. "If all those kids will be armed, we're gonna need more than what we have."  
Pipsqueak nodded and he slid down the ropes, feet landing heavily on the earth. The Duke landed lightly on his shoulders. "Onward!" He cried.

After many more sparring matches, Sneers began to realize his fighting was futile. Smellerbee was just too good. Plus, she had every type of dagger known to mankind. She could outmatch his puny set of knives with her extensive one any day.  
What really irritated him was how bored Smellerbee looked when fighting him, as if realizing from the start that defeating him wouldn't be a problem.  
Suddenly, an alarmed bird call sounded through the trees. Sneers picked up his dagger and sped back to camp, followed closely by Longshot and Smellerbee.

The Duke and Pipsqueak looked up, arms full of acorns and small stones. The Duke hopped up on Pipsqueak's shoulders and he ran back to camp, The Duke carrying the ammunition.

Jet watched as kids gathered around the main platform silently, falling out of the sky or crawling out of leaves, or flying up the ropes. The rest of the Freedom Fighters arrived, The Duke carrying nuts and rocks, which he poured into a wooden crate. Sneers came up off the rope followed by Smellerbee and then Longshot. Everyone was quiet, waiting for his news.  
Jet stared at all the small kids. Then sighed. "Afternoon scouts just got back. They've reported Fire Nation men straying into the forest, getting closer to the hideout." Some kids started to shift uncomfortably. "We need to set up those qualified at slingshot posts. The Duke, I need your help with that. The rest of you, save Smellerbee, Sneers, Longshot, and Pipsqueak, go back to your tree houses and wait. When I sound the call, you can all come back."  
The kids rushed into position. The Duke set up the slingshot kids, handing them nuts and rocks. The five other Freedom Fighters waited for him. When he returned, Jet began to speak.  
"We need to _scare_ these soldiers away, not _kill_ them. Sure they deserve it, but we can't have the rest of the troops wandering in close to find them when they don't come back. Just terrify them or whatever. Send them packing."  
Smellerbee looked a little anxious. Jet glanced at her. "Smellerbee, that means you. I know you can get a little... Carried away, at times."  
Smellerbee snorted indignantly. "I have _self control._" Sneers smirked, and Smellerbee kicked him. She smiled as he winced. Jet rolled his eyes. "Whatever, just no killing. Ok guys, let's head out."  
The group of six waited in the trees in pairs; The Duke and Pipsqueak, Smellerbee and Longshot, and Jet and Sneers. The Duke had his slingshot ready, Longshot had an arrow notched, and Smellerbee had pulled out her favorite set of throwing knives. Groaning in the branches above signified other kids with slingshots, waiting to rain down on the Fire Nation the nuts and rocks of fury. Jet smiled to himself as he heard rustling in the brush below. Five Fire Nation men stepped out, spears in hand, armor left at camp.  
Jet watched one of them trip, which caused an eruption of songbird calls, echoing around the forest. The kids were sharing their laughter their way. Jet let out a long slow call, and all went silent. The leader glanced back down at the soldiers, pleased to see they were already creeped out by the bird calls.  
Out of the corner of his eye, Jet saw a glint of silver. He looked over to see Smellerbee holding a throwing knife between two fingers, the object swinging back and forth. Suddenly, with a flick of her wrist, Smellerbee sent the knife flying, and it landed, stuck in the bark of a tree, just missing a soldiers nose. The five Fire Nation soldiers froze, and Jet could see the fear forming on their expressions. He gave another long, low whistle followed by a series of short chirps, and suddenly rocks and acorns were pelting soldiers left and right, stabbing at the revealed skin.  
The Fire Nation men cried out in surprise, waving their thin spears around to fight off the barrage of nature. Soon, they fled screaming into the forest, back to where they came.  
When they were all gone, Jet sounded the victory bird call. More bird calls sounded, obviously meant to be a safe way of cheering in the trees. Smellerbee retrieved her throwing knife and they all headed back to the hideout.

At dinner that night, Jet arranged a toast.  
"Thanks for all the help we received today in taking out the Fire Nation Scum." More cheering from the group of kids. "Tomorrow is the day we attack the camp set up in the clearing. With the exception of The Duke, Smellerbee, Longshot, Sneers, and Pipsqueak, all of you guys will need to stay at the hideout until we get back. We will leave in the early morning, so try to keep the bird calls at a minimum. Now... Let's eat!"  
More cheers rose from around the dining platform, and kids began to tear through their food. Sneers ate more slowly than usual, and Smellerbee ate like a normal person; leaving out the stabbing. Longshot ate silently as usual, but with a different kind of vibe. The Duke and Pipsqueak didn't play around. They just ate in silence. Nobody noticed the change in mood, not even Jet.  
The five of them all had the same reason: doubt. They doubted Jet's decision to take out the dam in a couple of days. They were conflicted, forced to choose between loyalty and objective. They all knew it was pointless to take out so many soldiers for years, just to free a village, only to end up destroying the village and all the lives in it.  
But they said nothing. They found themselves in the trees the next morning, waiting for a distraction. Jet leaned on a thin branch, a grass blade in his teeth trembling in the breeze. They had been up there for hours, and Longshot was beginning to feel cramped.  
That was when the Water Tribe boy stepped out of the bushes. "...Fire Na...tion."


	3. Sokka's Dream

The Lost Tales of Avatar

_3_

_Sokka's Dream_

"You could call it luck," Aang said mischievously. "Or... You could call it _lying_."

"What?!" Sokka cried.

"I made the whole thing up..." Aang replied sheepishly.

Katara, looking shocked, denied it. "You did _not_!" Then, realizing he wasn't joking, continued "That is _so_ wrong."

Looking around, Aang asked excitedly "Now where's that custard tart? I'm starving!"

The trio reached the edge of the island. The sun began to dip into the sky as Aang, Katara and Sokka finished setting up camp. Katara called Aang over to practice Waterbending, and Sokka stayed behind with Appa and Momo. His stomach growled, and Momo chattered loudly.

"Yeah Momo, I'm hungry too. Let's go find some food." The lemur chattered and hopped on the non-bender's shoulders.

The couple walked for a while, Sokka lazily chopping overgrown plants out of his way. Many obnoxious Momo noises later, Sokka found himself basking in a pile of fruit. He and Momo carried as much back to the camp as possible just as the sun began to disappear. Arriving back at camp, they dropped all the fruit and began to eat.

Katara and Aang came up over the rise that led down to the beach, laughing. Noticing Sokka's stash, they quickly joined him.

Appa licked up the larger of the fruits and Momo did little in protest, and soon everyone was full and exhausted from the long last few days of travel through the Great Divide.

Katara and Aang went to bed, and so did Sokka, after finishing off one more fruit. He curled into his sleeping bag, the warm blue fabric encasing him as a cocoon. Soon, the young Water Tribe warrior feel asleep.

_Sokka hummed thoughtfully as he strode down a dusty pathway, searching for the village on his map. Katara and Aang laughed, following him along, skipping and smiling. Appa and Momo flew overhead, making loud chattering sound and groaning. _

_A clearing approached the group, and the discovered the small village. Rickety old wooden buildings stood unstably on thin stilts, thatched roofs drooping over the sad excuses for homes. _

_Sokka looked around. The village was quiet, save for a few people wandering about. Katara and Aang began skipping through the village, smiling with weird happy faces and bright, rosy cheeks that might as well have been glow-in-the-dark. A few stands were open along the sides of the village, the owners calling out, advertising their products. _

_An enticing aroma drifted from one building- this one looked out of place in the run-down, saggy town. The wood looked new and polished, the roof made of tile and curled up on the corners. The curtain in the threshold was brown, red and white, the base decorated with beads stringed along the edge. The wooden stairs that led up to the porch were worn and splintered, obvious evidence of use. Sokka began to drift towards that building, friends dancing along behind. Appa and Momo had disappeared. Sokka climbed the steps and onto the porch of the exquisite establishment. _

_Pulling back the wool curtain, Sokka began to drool at the sight bestowed upon him. _

_The place was spacious and dimly lit, red, tissue-thin lanterns hanging from the wooden rafters that held up the roof of the building. The design of the shop was beautiful- the kimono patterned wallpaper looking tattered yet fitting against the wall. Wood and papyrus paper dividers separated the restaurant area from the kitchen. The mahogany tables each fitted with a candle and average silverware. _

_People sat at these tables, chatting and enjoying meals Sokka had only dreamt in partaking in._

_Vast amounts of meat decorated the plates of the restaurant, coated thickly with gravy and sliced vegetables. Sokka immediately stepped over to a table with his friends, and soon a man arrived, asking what they would like to eat. They group, with a hungry look in their eyes, asked for more food than they could hope to afford. Luckily, this food was free. _

_Sokka waited until a different man returned, serving out the food to everyone. There was nothing the Water Tribe boy wanted more than to stick his knife into it and tear off pieces of his Turkey-Hen leg. That is, until it got up and walked of his plate. _

_Similar things happened around the restaurant; no one noticed. A Salmon-Tuna fillet would start gnawing on a child's hand, tearing brutally away at the flesh and breaking down the bone. The child wouldn't notice. Oyster-clams would snap at people, carrying limbs away with them. No one have them a second-glance. _

_Sokka began to feel uncomfortable as his Turkey-Hen leg started dancing. He grabbed his oblivious friend's hand and dragged them out of the place. They cried out in protest, but Sokka pulled at them harder. Suddenly, a whole Turkey-Hen breast with Sokka's Turkey-Hen leg in it's clutches, waddled out of the house at a high speed, terrifying Sokka as it started to beat down Aang's left leg. Aang ignored it. He simply argued with Sokka as the non-bender yanked at his and his sister's arms, trying to protect them from the terrible danger of the food they had left behind. _

_The Turkey-Hen breast was getting agitated as it went unnoticed. Sokka frantically tried to reason with his friends, pointing out the strange events. They acted as if they couldn't hear him. _

_The meat beating away at Aang finally had had enough, and knocked him out cold with a toss of his leg. Katara didn't notice, but then she too was assaulted by the raging, edible carcass. _

_Sokka ran for his life, an army of meat and vegetables hot in pursuit. Sokka knew it was hopeless; the food was just too fast. Coming to a stop beneath a conveniently placed cliff, Sokka turned just in time to see the food leap on him, crushing the air out of his lungs, the food zombies of Aang and Katara moaning after them. _

Momo leaped off of Sokka's chest, gurgling his Momo sounds until he went quiet. Sokka sat up, groggily asking "Huh? Uh... What's going on? Did we get captured again?" His weapons at the ready.


	4. Badgermoles

The Lost Tales of Avatar

_4_

_Book 2_

_Badgermoles_

The girl ran, tears forming in her eyes, her white silk dress flowing behind her. She had no idea where she was going, all she new was that she had to get away. She was angry. Angry at everyone she'd ever known. She didn't understand why they did this to her. They didn't care to know her. They didn't try to understand.

They nighttime world around her grew colder and the ground beneath her shoes slanted downwards. Unknowingly, she dashed into a cave, collapsing to her knees when she was far inside. She brought her small hands up to her face and covered her eyes, tears now streaming down her face. The girl wept, her dark bangs draping over her face.

She didn't want to be found. She didn't want them to try to find her. She wanted to be alone, to have a chance to do something. They wouldn't allow it. No matter how much she begged, no matter how much she cried, she would always be theirs, theirs to keep and hold, to shackle and lock away for safe keeping, to hide from the light of day, of the sun.

She had never once seen the sun.

She hadn't seen beyond the walls of her cell. She hadn't felt a whisper of a breeze, not heard the sounds of a whole village of people. She had never seen the sky, not a cloud, not a tree. She has never felt dirt between her toes, not tasted the saltiness of an ocean breeze. She has never been away from her prison, her dark cell impossible to escape.

Until today.

The girl's knees scraped against the floor of the cave, muddying her pale dress. She pulled her hands from her eyes, placing them on the ground before her. The dusty earth, wet with tears, was stable underneath her small hands. She tried to restrain her tears, her throat throbbing with effort.

The girl ran her hands through the earth, tiny fingers shifting through the loose, gravely soil. Just beneath this light layer was smooth, gray stone. The dark cave around her felt spacious, and her previous sobs had echoed through the vast underground tunnel.

As the girl continued to choke back tears in vain, a deep rumbling echoed through the corridor, and the solid earth beneath her began to tremble.

Oblivious to this, the girl started when something large (and slightly wet) nudged her in the back. She turned quickly, facing the creature. It was large, with short, brown fur and a creamy white stripe of fur coloring it's back, following its spine to the base of its tail. The creature had large, broad paws and long claws, and a long, narrow snout appropriate for burrowing. The most interesting thing about this creature, however, was its eyes. They were a pale, milky shade of bronze with no pupils. They seemed to see everything, and at the same time nothing at all.

The girl felt the muzzle of the creature poke her belly, and she fell on top of its snout, giggling. She held on sightly to the fur of its nose as it dragged her away.

Soon the pair stopped, and the animal nudged her into a position where she stood on her hands and knees. The girl looked up, hoping to gaze at the creature. She could not tell, however, for her sightless eyes stared into darkness.

The large creature began to shuffle slowly away, and the equally blind girl followed, imitating the way the animal swept its front paws in outwards arcs, her face expressionless as she focused on listening to the movement of her teacher.

At some point, the girl began to feel vibrations lightly echo through the earth beneath her. It became easier to follow the large creature through the dark as she felt its bulky vibrations in her fingertips.

The ground began to slant upwards, but the pair reaches a point where the larger creature stopped, turning to the young girl.

By now, the girl could practically make a mental image of everything around her through vibrations in the earth. She mimicked the movements of the animal as it moved a rock without touching it. Lowering her arms and hands in an outwards slashing motion, she slid her right foot towards a small rock that rest on the ground. The result- the rock flew across the tunnel, hitting the far wall.

The young blind girl giggled in joy as she felt it land. The animal before her grunted approval.

The girl followed as the creature lumbered away, towards the cave entrance. Before reaching it, however, the creature stopped once again to demonstrate an earthbending movement. Once again the girl followed, stomping her foot on the ground and digging the heel forward, all the while batting the air with her hand, her thumb and little finger tucked into her palm. Three pillars of earth shot forward, moving up next to her mentor's. she clapped her hands joyfully and began to sweep through other movements, following her teacher. Rock pillars shot to the ceiling of the tunnel, rocks flying around and crashing into them. Clouds of dust rolled up from the earth as the animal taught the girl how to blind the sighted enemy.

After all this fun, however, the girl was tired, and knew it was time for her to return to her world- to her prison. She hugged the creature's muzzle and it guided her to the surface world.

The girl was no longer angry. She knew her life would be bearable as long as she retained her new talent. She no longer needed assistance with the most simple things. She was grateful, and her teacher was generous.

As she turned away from the entrance to the cave and the retreating badgermole, Toph found her way home on her own.


	5. First Day

The Lost Tales of Avatar

_5_

_Book 2_

_First Day_

Toph's hands trembled with excitement. At ten years old, she was finally going out into public. Secretly, of course. Her parents would never allow her out otherwise, and they wouldn't ever let her outside again (a privilege she so recently was given) if they found out why.

She put on her earthbending attire, her private uniform crafted for her by her earthbending " master", Master Yu. She didn't wear it anymore, but it was supposedly normal Earth Kingdom clothing. The one thing she owned that wasn't a dress. Her favorite headband rested on her head, but let her bangs fall in front of her eyes. Toph's unseeing eyes stared out, and her feet detected no vibrations.

It was late at night- she could tell by the drop in temperature. Almost midnight. She slipped out of her open window, sneaking across the courtyard and past the guards. The blind girl made her way behind the estate, opening a tunnel and closing it above her as she leaped in. She followed her feet to the vibrations of the large underground arena she had discovered weeks before. She headed to Earth Rumble Six.

She arrived underneath the entrance, slamming her fist into the ceiling to check what was around her. Rocketing upwards, she appeared yards away from the entrance. She walked up to the two guards at the entrance, who, after looking for any fire nation spies, opened the doors for her.

As Toph stepped through the threshold, she gasped in wonder as her feet felt the vibrations that echoed around the place. Thousands of Earth Kingdom people gathered, all focused on one thing- the square platform in the middle of the arena. She sensed crystals thickly coating the ceiling. And noticing the main attraction, she took her seat at the near front of the arena, which was strangely empty.

A loud sound echoed around the room, and a trembling in the earth signaled the man coming out of it. By what Toph could feel, he was all muscle, and moderately tall. The blind girl leaned forward in anticipation, wondering what was going to happen.

"Welcome to Earth Rumble Six!" The man hollered. "Are you all ready to rumble?" Toph smirked at the lame question as the rest of the crowd cheered.

"Then lets start this! Up first, we have Spider versus The Big, Bad, Hippo!"

The crowd went wild. Toph sat quietly, taking in every small vibration that might signify an earthbending move she didn't know. The Spider was a lithe man, moving on his hands and the balls of his feet, his knees tucked under his bare chest. Toph sensed his opponent, The Hippo (whatever a "Hippo" is) was an opposite to the agile man he faced. His footsteps her heavy, and Toph's seismic sense, as she called it, showed her he was quite heavy-set.

Spider said nothing as The Hippo called out a jeer, his limited vocabulary making him sound of less intelligence than anyone she had ever met. Then again, she hadn't met many people. Maybe this was how everyone spoke outside of her home.

Fans screaming cheers told her otherwise. Maybe limited intelligence just came with being a jock. Toph smiled to herself. She was just around their level and knew more vocabulary than these grown men. She hoped she could learn from these people. She was oblivious to her own skill level and was currently observing the battle.

Spider launched two boulders at the Hippo, but they bounced off his thick skin like they were marbles. Toph listened and felt as the two launched pillars of rock at each other, either enduring hits or dodging them. Suddenly, the crowd gasped, and Toph paid special attention as the Hippo began to shake the entire platform. Spider leapt upwards, but as he did so the Hippo hurled a pillar into his side. Spider was thrown out of the ring. Hippo roared victoriously and the crowd was in a frenzy.

Toph's eyebrows raised in surprise. She had never seen a move like that, but she knew it wasn't the same style her earthbending teacher, the badgermole, had taught her. The Spider's style had been different as well. Toph wondered if there was more than one style of earthbending.

The Hippo ended up victorious several times. The earthbender became cocky and overconfident. At least eight more matches later, he was challenging the ring champion. So far, Toph was barely impressed. Sure, there had been some cool moments, but otherwise this group of "amazing" earthbenders was nothing but a bunch of sweaty, muscly guys without shirts.

"And now, for the moment you've all been waiting for- The Hippo versus-your campion-Landslide Lance!" The crowd went wild, several shouting very vulgar things. The Hippo bellowed, a low sound that slammed into Toph's sensitive eardrums. The blind girl huffed in annoyance. "Just get on with it," she muttered as the cheers died away.

The Hippo started with offense, making pillars of earth jump around the floor. One came up under Landslide Lance, and the ring champion leaped off of it and slammed into the Hippo. The Hippo staggered but remained on his feet. He pushes Lance into the ground, encasing the champion up to his waist. He jumped up high, preparing to come back down with a move that would send Landslide Lance out of the ring. But the other earthbender had a trick ready. As The Hippo came down, he slammed a fist into the earth, launching two rock pillars under the Hippo's feet. The Hippo was sent out of the ring, and the crowd was silent as Landslide Lance earthbent himself out of the crack.

Suddenly, Toph felt Lance give a motion like a bow, and the crowd screamed in admiration.

The Earth Rumble was over, and it was time for the blind girl to leave. She smirked to herself as she left, thinking _Next week, we'll see who your champion is. _

Days passed slowly as Toph waited for the next Earth Rumble. She thought over the moves she had observed, remembering trademark motions and vibrations.

Sometimes Toph wondered what the real names of the people up in that ring's names were. She figured no one in their right mind would name their child "The Hippo." But once again, she decided she shouldn't judge. She didn't know anything about the world beyond her prison besides that small amount of underground wonder.

When finally the day came for the Earth Rumble, Toph left earlier than before in her same informal attire. She arrives the same way, but when she got inside she turned to the left. People were just starting to crowd into the arena, the fight would start soon. Toph didn't have much time.

She discovered a tunnel leading down under the public seating. She followed it and it led her to an entrance to the ring. She felt the same man from before standing there in the threshold, staring out at the platform. The blind ten year old cleared her throat, bangs hanging loosely over her face, obscuring her eyes. The man whipped around. "What are you doing down here? Civilians aren't supposed to be in here! This is earthbenders only."

Toph attempted rolling her unseeing eyes. "Well I'm an earthbender." She retorted. The man grunted with irritation and Toph smiled slyly. "Yes but you are still a civilian. You must leave at once!"

Toph stood her ground. "You own this place?" She asked casually. The man didn't back down either. "Yes, but does that matter? You need to leave!" He shouted.

Toph ignored the infuriated man. "So how does this work, do I sign a paper or something?" She questioned the man, hoping this ignorant man knew what she meant. No such thing.

The man faltered, staring down at the girl with a confused look. "What are you talking about?" He asked, uncertain yet still angry. The girl didn't look his way as she replied "Well that really depends," she leaned closer, staring at his shoes. "Are you gonna let me fight?"

The question startled the man. Girls didn't usually want anything to do with these fights, besides occasionally watching them and cheering for their favorite guy. This girl didn't look any more than ten years old and she already wanted to fight.

To Toph's disappointment, he let out a harsh laugh. "You? Fight?! Ha! Don't make me laugh. A little girl could never fight in these matches! Why don't you go back to your parents?" He sneered.

For the first time, the girl looked like she was paying attention. She stared up into his face and he was startled to notice the milky film covering he eyes. "Listen here, Macho Man. I didn't sneak out of my house at the middle of the night and earthbend myself a tunnel all the way here to be turned down. I came to fight in this Earth Rumble of yours and that's exactly what I'm going to do." Her assertive tone made him want to give in to her, and the finger pointed at his chest wasn't helping.

His only response: "I can't let a blind girl fight in my arena- it's too dangerous! You must be insane to even think you stand a chance." He assured himself. But Toph only turned away.

"Fine, have it your way. I'll just find some other way to fight. With or without your consent."

Not appreciating her rebellious act, he shouted "Wait!" The blind girl turned slightly, her face looking slightly to the left. "Yes?" She responded.

The man sighed. "You may fight. My name is Xin Fu. What is yours?"

Toph smiled slyly. She thought for a moment, then replied "Just call me... The Blind Bandit." And with that the new fighter turned to prepare for her first fight.

Xin Fu stared after her. How a blind girl could step so surely, he was not sure. All he knew was, there was a special treat for the audience tonight; a good beating awaited them.

Unfortunately for Xin Fu, he was expecting this for the wrong person.

The newly dubbed Blind Bandit fixes her headband as she heard Xin Fu calling out the first opponents. As the newest fighter, she would be out first.

"And now for our first match," Xin Fu began. "We have a special fight. A brand new face to smash in, Spider versus, for the first time anywhere, The Blind Bandit!"

Toph could hear the anticipating cheers and exited shouts waiting for her. Spider was already up on the platform. The blind girl stepped out into the open, moving onto the platform.

Absolute silence. Even someone without Toph's enhanced hearing, you could hear a copper piece fall.

Suddenly, laughter erupted from the crowd. Even the Spider sounded amused. The Blind Bandit remained un-phased as her opponent let out a snide remark.

"Are you lost, _little girl?_ Need help finding your mommy?"

The crowd burst out laughing again, and Xin Fu sighed sadly. He knew this had been a bad idea. He felt guilty, this spunky girl was going to end up broken at the bottom of a pit all because he let her fight. He almost stepped out to stop the fight when the girl answered just as confidently "Only one who's going to need help after we're through is you, _Tender-foot."_

Xin Fu was impressed. Not only did she get her way onto that platform, she fought for it. She was stubborn like the earth, and wasn't going to let harsh words bring her down.

Spider laughed. "We'll see who's talking once I'm through. Don't worry- I'll make it quick." The earthbender started off the fight with a slab of earth. He slid it towards the girl with incredible speed, and the crowd held their breath, waiting for the girl to fall out of the ring.

It never happened.

The Blind Bandit calmly stepped out of the way, just in time. Astonished, Spider regained his composure and prepared to rake two boulders out of the ground and fling them at the girl. He figured she couldn't really be blind. No one without sight could move so surely out of the way. The entirety of the crowd thought the exact same thing.

But the girl didn't even seem to be facing Spider as she deflected the two rocks with her bare fists. The audience gasped. They had all seen it- what had taken Xin Fu a whole discussion to see- her eyes. They were pale green, like someone had added the slightest amount of green dye to a cup of milk. They were clouded, and didn't dilate with light change. Everyone knew immediately. The Blind Bandit really was blind, and she was lasting longer than most with the Spider. And she hadn't even earthbent yet.

Suddenly, she assumed a stance. A simple horse stance with a slight shift of footing, making her approach her opponent sideways. Frantically, Spider flew a line of pillars spiking up out of the earth towards The Blind Bandit. Toph slid her right foot, currently behind her and slightly to the right, all the way behind her, moving out of the way of the pillars.

It was her turn. Toph threw her hands, palms facing down, forwards, dipping them slightly. A ripple in the earth ran towards the Spider, throwing him into the air and out of the girls seismic range.

Freezing noticeably, The Blind Bandit waited for him to hit the ground. Once he did, a pillar of earth launched from the ground, hitting the Spider in the gut and sending him out of the ring.

The Blind Bandit won her first match.

The excitement grew as Toph made her way up the ladder of matches. Time and time again, opponents underestimated her, only to end up outside of the ring, clutching some part of their body in pain.

Toph was feeling the love- the audience cheered whenever she made a move, roaring when she knocked someone out.

As she finished off her last opponent before the champion, the Hippo, Toph wiped the sweat off of her brow. It was tiring, fighting tons of experienced, muscly, middle-ages guys. Beating them at their own game.

Xin Fu was content. His newest addition was making a name for herself. He was bringing in cash as bets were made on winners. And best of all- Earth Rumble Six was sure to capture more attention as people started to notice The Blind Bandit.

She was ushered back to her corner by the referee as Xin Fu made his appearance.

"And now, for the moment you've all been waiting for..."

Landslide Lance waited in his tunnel. He hadn't yet heard of the new girl making her way up to his level. He wondered if The Hippo had made a comeback again, ready to try to take him down a second time.

_It could be Spider, or Fire Nation Man. I haven't smashed in their faces in a while._ The cocky champion thought as Xin Fu called out the familiar words. The ones following them, however, were unfamiliar and they surprised him.

"And now the moment you've all been waiting for... The Blind Bandit versus... Landslide Lance!"

Backup- _who_? Who was this "Blind Bandit"? Why hadn't he heard about him? How had this new guy gotten past all the earthbenders from before?

Landslide Lance smirked. Whoever he was, he wouldn't stand a chance against the champ.

As he stepped out onto the platform, Lance froze. This was not what he expected at all.

A little girl in common Earth Kingdom garb, her black bangs hiding her eyes. He didn't need to see them to tell she wasn't even facing him.

At discovering this small girl to be his opponent, he simply burst out laughing like the whole crowd had before they had seen what she could do.

"A little girl? What is this?" He sneered. "Sorry kid, but this ain't nursery school."

To his surprise, the girl laughed in reply. "Landslide Lance? What do you go around _burying_ people with puny _dust storms_?"

Lance grew irritated with the Blind Bandit's snide remarks. "Can you at _least_ give me the decency to look into my opponents eyes? Apparently I'll need all the help I can get in intimidating _you_." He added sarcastically, earning a few snickers from the audience.

The girl laughed and pushed her bangs to the side. For the first time ever, Landslide Lance could tell she was looking at him. Or at least, in his direction.

Her eyes were a milky jade, staring out as if there was nothing around her.

Like she could see everything, yet nothing at all.

Taken aback by the sudden realization that she really was blind, Lance regarded her as something more than a dumb little girl who got lost on the way home.

Letting her bangs fall back into place, The Blind Bandit sneered "You done yet? I'm still not feeling intimidated. But you seem to be a little on-edge."

Landslide Lance shook his head to clear it. "I'm gonna win this in a landslide." He taunted.

The Blind Bandit snickered. "Whenever your ready, _Dusty_."

The fight started with Landslide Lance taking his first step forward. That was all Toph needed. She slid her left foot forward, digging her heel into the solid rock beneath her. Lance brought his arms into his chest, fists closed. Taking a lung with his foot forward, he threw his arms out, opening his fists. A large fissure split the earth, coming strait towards Toph.

Pulling her left foot back and raising her arms, a slab of rock rose beneath her and she moved to the edge of the ring.

Lance smirked. How stupid could this little girl get? Moving to the edge of the ring was like begging to get kicked out. He sent a pillar of earth her way, but to his astonishment, she stepped out of the way, and in one fluid motion slid into her stance from before. This time, she didn't wait to attack. She picked her left foot up only to slam it back down, thrusting her elbows down with it. The ground trembled beneath Landslide Lance. It lifted him up and threw him, but he caught himself just in time with a pillar of rock. Then, he sent segments of the rock at the girl, one after another until the pillar was at ground level. He turned, expecting to be alone on the platform, only to discover The Blind Bandit had somehow survived his brutal attacks. He clenched his fists in frustration. She had only made one offensive move, and it was so simple it scared him how affective it was. He didn't let that bother him though. He just ripples the earth beneath the blind girl, sucking her into the earth up to her waist.

Toph placed her hands on the ground around her. She had anticipated this move, and was prepared. As Landslide Lance leaped into the air, preparing to come down and shoot her out of the ring, she shot a pillar of rock at him, hitting him square in the chest.

Landslide Lance landed outside of the ring for the first time in years.

The crowd was silent. Toph earthbent her way out of her dilemma and stood, alone, on the platform.

Cheering erupted from the crowd. Xin Fu ran out of the tunnel, raising The Blind Bandit's right hand up victoriously, shouting "Your new champion- _The Blind Bandit_!"

Two years later

"And now for the moment you've all been waiting for- The Boulder versus... The Blind Bandit!"

The crowd cheered wildly as a small, twelve-year-old girl stepped into the ring.

Katara stared, surprised. "She can't really be _blind_. It's... Just part of her character, right?" She continued uncertainly.

"I think she is." Aang replied quietly, staring at the young girl so confidently standing before the large man.

Her eyes were a steamy green mist, seeing everything, yet nothing at all.


	6. Muddy Waters

The Lost Tales of Avatar

_6_

_Book 2_

_Muddy Waters_

Katara stared distastefully after the young earthbender girl. She seemed to lack all etiquette. She was an opposite of her former self, the sweet, silk clad, helpless little girl she had been forced to be. She was spunky and brash, and Katara felt it was unnecessary for a twelve year old girl who had always had everything to be so rebellious. Katara refused to consider her family. She refused to put her in with Sokka, Aang and herself. This was her family, and she wasn't going to allow some conceited little brat tear down what she had so carefully built.

Toph yawned. She didn't want anything to do with Sugar Queen at the moment. She couldn't see the expression on her face, but she could feel the vibes of annoyance rolling off of her as she walked away. That girl just didn't understand- after being trapped, caged, for so long... To finally be out, to feel the fresh, crisp air of the morning and taste the humidity of nighttime without having to sneak outside... It was all she had ever wanted.

She hadn't known that by signing up to come with them, she'd just be chastised for everything she did that others didn't like.

The now group of four had woken in Appa's saddle after the long past couple of days. The fire nation princess that had followed them had pursued the gang in a metal tank-like machine that followed the fur Appa shed. The four had been deprived of sleep, making everyone irritable, especially two certain young benders.

Toph and Katara had constantly bickered and poked fun at each other, Katara even once going as far as to make fun of Toph's blindness. At the end of the day, however, they had faced Azula and the two made up. They had been on pretty good terms throughout the day until Katara had brought up Toph's hygiene.

The waterbender had tried to convince the blind girl to go wash in a nearby stream, but Toph had refused, replying she was perfectly fine the way she was. The two argued about this for a while, until Toph had had enough and stormed away.

_Maybe she'll give cleaning up a second thought_. Katara hoped bitterly, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

Toph didn't of course, and the group piled onto Appa for their flight to a nearby canyon that would take two days to reach.

Katara didn't know why the blind girl was so against bathing. It was just water. Unless Toph was secretly allergic to water (which Katara highly doubted), she shouldn't be so against taking a bath. Of course, Katara found this was important, to win this argument and get Toph into the water. After they landed, maybe she could use her bending...

Toph climbed onto they Sky Bison with slight difficulty. The furry mass beneath her groaned and she shivered as her feet lifted off of the ground. She hauled herself into the saddle, feeling her way to the edge where she could loop an arm through what she assumed to be a handle. Aang sat on Appa's head, and Sokka and Katara were already on The saddle when she finally climbed on. The blind earthbender lay on her back, arm still in the loop, and closed her sightless eyes. She felt the light breeze wash over her face as well as the nauseous feeling she had from air sickness.

_At least it's not water,_ she thought optimistically, shivering at the thought of water travel.

Katara watched as Toph struggled slightly to get on Appa. No one made a move to help her as they tried to give her space. Even Katara knew that it was best to let her adjust on her own to this new way of living, and that by letting Toph experience things her own way, she was bound to see, eventually, that their way was the easier, better way. Wasn't she?

Katara never knew how to approach the unpredictable girl. She made long speeches about being solid and unmovable like a rock, but she herself was just as unstable as a precarious boulder.

Katara watched as Toph lay down with her arm in Appa's saddle's loop. When the girl closed her eyes she looked calm. Peaceful, even. Every now and then her eyebrows would lower forcefully, as if she were trying not to think about something.

Toph fell asleep on the way to their mid-trip campsite. The silence aboard the Flying Bison was making her uncomfortable, but made it easier to fall asleep.

Katara watched the girl with an unreadable expression on her face. She and Sokka began a conversation in hushed voices so as not to wake the irritable earthbender. Aang steered Appa around the sky, sometimes using his waterbending to move clouds out of the way. The group flew on for a while as Katara and Sokka finished their conversation. Finally, at midday, Aang started to land Appa in the clearing of a forest.

Toph woke with a start as Appa landed. She almost panicked when she couldn't "see". She practically fell off the Bison and landed face first in the dirt below.

Katara snickered. Toph lifted her face out of the dirt happily, waving her arms around on the solid rock. "I never thought I'd be so happy to feel rock." She said.

The other three hopped off of Appa and Toph stood off, mud smudged on her face. Katara stared at her with distaste. "Toph you should probably clean that up."

Immediately the blind earthbender spun around, looking menacingly at the place just below Katara's face. "I don't need you to tell me what to do, _Sugar Queen_."

Sokka took a step back, but Aang stepped forward between the two girls. "Calm down!" He begged. "Just... Don't talk to each other!"

Katara snorted. "Fine by _me_." She stomped away, Toph turning the other direction.

Aang moaned, throwing his hands above his head and slouching towards the earth. "They just made up yesterday! Those two are like Cat-Squirrels and Dog-Mice!"

Sokka slung an arm over his shoulder. "Their girls, buddy. It's best not to get tangled in their messes."

Aang said nothing, just stared as the two girls walked separate ways.

Katara stood waste deep in the stream next to their camp, sending loathing glares over at Toph, who was currently picking at her toes. The waterbender moved her arms in a circular motion, drawing water out of the river and circling it around herself. Then, slowly, she pushed her palms down towards the river, lowering the water, then raised her palms back up, face up, raising herself up in a geyser of water. She started up the circular motion again to keep the geyser in place, then used her right arm to raise a small pillar of water next to her. She then made it circle her in a wavy sort of way.

Toph heard running water beside her. She sat on a rock that jutted out over the river. When she heard a strange sound, she figured Katara was waterbending herself into the air. Water sprayed the blind earthbender lightly in the face and she shivered. Ignoring her discomfort, Toph continued to pick at the stale skin between her toes. She earthbent a sandy stone into her hand and began to rub away at the heels of her calloused feet.

Katara stared at the earthbender, her irritation growing with every second. She dropped the geyser quickly, making small waves lap at the edges of the river. She kept the other water circling around her with one hand. Katara had a plan. She was going to make Toph bathe no matter what it took.

Oblivious to the waterbender's plan, Toph slaved away at her feet, scraping at the tough skin. Her black bangs covered her eyes, and one could almost forget she was blind with the intent look she worked with. She held a solid expression, one of determination at the subject of her feet, but inside she was feeling a mixture of things.

_Who does Sugar Queen think she is? Telling everyone what to do. I'll clean up when I want to._ She thought bitterly. _How could she possibly think a blind girl would learn how to-_

She was interrupted from her thoughts by a sudden blast over water to her side. Toph was carried off of the rock she sat on, landing on the earth next to it, sputtering and coughing. She stood up, looking around for her attacker, but the only people in her seismic range were Sokka and Aang.

Suddenly, a new vibration stepped onto the earth. _Katara_. The Blind Bandit whipped around to face her. There was a smug smile lingering on her voice when she spoke. "Oops, sorry Toph! Did I wash off some of the dirt from your face? Didn't know you _needed it so badly_."

The earthbender was infuriated. She wiped the now-mud on her face with a hand, leaving a sort of rake mark. "Sorry, _Sweetness_. Didn't know you had such _terrible aim_." She retorted.

Katara held her arms up, most likely preparing to launch a waterbending move at her opponent. That's when both Aang and Sokka leapt in front of them. "Please!" Aang begged Katara. "Stop this fighting!" Sokka continued. "This is ridiculous! You two are going _crazy_!" Sokka faced Toph as Aang faced Katara. Toph only moved the earth beneath the guys, practically shoving them out of the way.

The guys stared helplessly as the two girls began to fight it out. Both had advantages. Katara knew that Toph had no experience fighting water benders and would be distracted easily by her movements. Toph couldn't see, but she knew where Katara was at all times without needing to face her, and could probably get some bearings as to what the waterbender was going to throw at her before she even knew herself.

Katara started out by launching a stream of water at the earthbender. Toph had no idea what her movements had meant. They were so different from earthbending movements. However, she could hear the water slicing through the air and ducked just in time to avoid getting hit in the face.

Sokka shouted out from the sidelines. "Stop this right now! You guys are friends! You need to stop fighting right now before you hurt each other!" His desperate calls went ignored.

Toph slid into a horse stance, swinging her right arm in a wide arc before her. An arc of earth shot from the ground towards Katara. The waterbender raised a wall of water before her to block, then sent the entire wall at the earthbender.

Toph was confused by the vibrations. They seemed to come from everywhere. She turned her head in different directions, trying to pick up a sound that might give her a clue as to what was going on. She heard the loud sound of rushing water all around her, as well as the sound of Aang and Sokka's shouts and desperate cries to her left.

Katara stared mercilessly at the annoying girl. She knew, of course, that this fight was entirely pointless, yet necessary all the same. She had to put this little brat in her place. She had to show her she was more experienced than her, that she knew more about their group than this girl who seemed so comfortable in it after just a couple of days.

Katara watched as Toph stared around, confused. She knew that the wave had messed up her "sight" and was screwing with her hearing as well. Then, just as the wave was about to hit her, Toph surrounded herself in a sphere of earth, protecting her from the blow.

Relieved sighs were heard from Katara's right, where Aang and Sokka looked on. Feeling even more irritated, Katara turned her attention back to the girl. Toph looked equally angry. The earthbender turned from defense to offense, launching a boulder at the waterbender. Katara jumped onto the rock then off of it, into the air where she knew Toph couldn't see her.

Katara was suddenly out of Toph's seismic range and everything was silent. Toph froze. She listened carefully and her advanced hearing picked out an unnatural sound in the air above her. She launched a pillar of earth at the sound and heard a splash. She was not expecting what happened next.

Aang and Sokka looked on in horror as Katara launched a stream of water into Toph's left side, hurling the girl into the river. Katara seemed satisfied- until a scream tore through the air. She glanced over to her left to see Toph struggling to keep her head above water. Her toes grazed the river floor, and she tried to bend the sand to her will. Aang and Sokka rushed forward to help. Katara tried to waterbend the water around Toph to help her, but the girl was thrashing about to much and moving downstream much too fast.

Of course- what was Katara thinking? A blind girl who had never been out of the house would never have learned to swim.

Aang made an air scooter and hovered over the waters surface, chasing after the girl. The river grew deeper, and Toph could no longer touch the bottom of the river. The only thing that kept her above water was the constant movement of it. She was completely blind, and hydrophobia began to set in her mind. She heard Sokka shouting to her right as she was swept backwards, her arms moving wildly to catch hold of something.

Fingers locked around her wrist, and she was suddenly raised out of the water.

Katara made her way to where Aang had dragged Toph out of the river quickly. The girl was soaking wet coughing and trying to wipe water off of her arms and squeeze it out of her clothes. Her bangs were plastered firmly against her face, hiding her eyes. Sokka arrived, out of breath. He bent over, hands on his knees, and raised one finger. He didn't say anything, because Katara beat him to it.

"Toph, I'm so sorry!" She rushed over to help dry off the earthbender, but Toph pushed her away. "I-it's fine, Katara. I was just... Surprised. That's all,"

She didn't face Katara. The waterbender didn't know if it was since she was blind and looking at her was pointless, or because she was embarrassed. Possibly both.

_Back at camp..._

Katara glanced over at Toph. The girl was sitting beside a fire, arms wrapped around her knees. Aang and Sokka had gone off to get more firewood, and so the two girls were alone- save for Momo and Appa.

Katara sighed inwardly. She walked over and sat down next to the earthbender, who was still in the middle of drying off.

Toph turned her head slightly towards Katara as she sat down on her left. The two sat in silence for a while before Katara spoke.

"I'm sorry I pushed you into the river." She stated flatly. Toph remained silent, only turning her head completely back to the fire. Katara sighed out loud.

"I didn't mean for-" Toph interrupted her. "It doesn't matter, Katara. It was an accident." Her monotone voice made Katara uneasy.

"Look," the waterbender started assertively. "I know what I did was wrong. And, I'm... Sorry I got so angry when you wouldn't clean up. I just felt that you were ungrateful and-"

Again, Toph cut her off. "-and that I was just being difficult, blah blah blah." Judging by the surprised vibrations Katara had given off, she had not been expecting her to know what she thought. The earthbender continued. "But I'm not. I don't expect you to understand." She laughed, but not like she was happy. "I mean, you've spent your whole life being able to run around and have fun. Have _friends_. I got none of that."

Katara felt guilty as the blind girl went on. "You think I got everything I ever wanted, when really I was deprived of just that. I guess now that I'm finally free, I just feel like I have to do this all alone." She paused to take a breath. "Only, I guess I realized, that if that's the case, I'll always be alone. I'll never have a friend."

Katara edged closer to the girl. She smiled softly, even though she knew the young girl couldn't see it. "I think you've found friends already. You just need to let yourself realize it."

Katara hugged Toph, and the earthbender didn't budge. As Sokka and Aang came back to the scene, Katara smiled a little more. _This is my family. _She thought. _I've built it so carefully, and I'm not going to let anyone come and tear it down._


	7. City Life Alone

The Lost Tales of Avatar

_7_

_Book 2_

_City Life Alone_

A silence engulfed the two young warriors as they trudged home to their apartment. That was normal for him, of course, but his unpredictable companion was usually very talkative. She too said nothing, however, as they made it back inside the small living place.

Both sat down quietly on the floor, legs crossed. Smellerbee perches her elbows on her knees, head in her hands. "He's really screwed up, Longshot." She sighed. Her archer companion only nods slowly.

Neither of them want to relive what had happened. Jet's inability to move on from his obsession with revenge had gotten him into trouble. _Deep_ trouble. Now he was off with the Dai Li somewhere and Longshot and Smellerbee were alone without a leader.

The two sat like that for a while until finally Smellerbee stood up. Longshot looked up, expecting her to say something, but the girl only stepped into the cramped bedroom the three of them had shared. Longshot sighed. Jet really had messed up. They would find him, though. He would escape. He always did. He was a Freedom Fighter- no one stopped him.

The archer stood up slowly and followed Bee into the other room. He found she had dropped her weapons and armor at the base of her hammock, and he went over to his bed. Longshot leaned his bow and quiver against the wall and set his hat on the floor. He sat down on his bed, staring into the darkness before he too gave in to sleep.

Longshot sat up in his bed, blinking sleep out of his eyes. Glancing to his right, he spotted Smellerbee snoring in her hammock. Longshot rolled his eyes. Getting out of bed, he gave the hammock a rough shove, and the unsuspecting girl fell to the ground. "Mmph!" The muffled cry sounds.

"Longshot!" She shouted. A slight smile tugged at the archers lips as his companion stood up and dusted herself off. He didn't let it through, but Smellerbee read his expression. "Oh, that's funny, eh?" She gave her friend a playful shove.

After a few minutes of pushing each other over, the two stepped out of the room and began to recall the events of the previous day. Their light mood began to darken, and they scavenged a small cabinet for food, only to find some nuts and dried fruit. Smellerbee brutally attempted smashing the nut shells while Longshot tried to chew on the fruit.

Standing up in frustration, Smellerbee drops the nut and grabs her dagger. "I can't stand this!" She shouted angrily. "I need something I can either crush, stab, or at least dent!" Longshot tossed the dried fruit aside and stood in agreement. They silently decided to go find something _edible_ to eat.

Longshot left his bow and quiver behind, grabbing his hat before they left. Smellerbee had a harder time parting with her weapons. She decided to keep her favorite dagger in its place in the belt she wore and a couple of throwing knives, just in case.

Out on the streets, the community was just beginning to stir, a few early workers roaming the streets. The duo made their way down the street, dust picking up in their wake. The smells of baked goods and other delicious things drifted through the air, making the two Freedom Fighters even hungrier. They didn't have any money and would have to find their own food. But the city was surrounded by walls on all sides. No opportunities for hunting opened, and there wasn't much plant life to find, let alone eat, in the lower ring of Ba Sing Se. Longshot checked every alleyway for something edible that may have been tossed out. Smellerbee held people at dagger point, asking where they could find something. Neither came out with a solution. Most of Smellerbee's interrogations ended in people running away desperately.

That was when Longshot suggested the unthinkable.

"_Jobs_?" Smellerbee gaped at him. "How are a couple of dusty kids like us gonna get _jobs_?"

Longshot gave her an optimistic look. _We've survived with our own skills so far. Why should this be any different?_

Smellerbee sighed. "We'll, yeah, I guess. But this isn't the forest anymore, Longshot. People have _expectations_ and _laws_. It's not like there's a gang out here who's gonna waltz right up to us: 'You two look rather desperate. Wanna help us rob some stands?'"

Longshot shook his head as they continued walking. _Then we'll just have to put on an act, now won't we?_

Smellerbee huffed. "I'm not a very good actor." The two walked on in silence for a while, until Longshot stopped his friend and pointed out a small shop nestled between two dark alleys. It was a small bakery, like the ones they had passed before, only this one looked a bit less... welcoming. Nonetheless, people were meandering around on the inside, looking for a place to sit. The archer and the warrior exchanged glances, then stepped inside.

The place was small. The floor was dusty, unpolished wood with nails sticking out everywhere. The walls had peeling paper and flakes of paint chipping off at the edges. There were a few tables, each low with floor cushions for seating. On the far left, a wooden countertop was decorated with baked goods of all sorts- from toasted rings of dough (as later found out- bagels) to fruit pastries.

It was no wonder the place was in such bad shape- the shop owner had no one to help him. All he could do was bake and sell, and by the end of the day, it would be just too much work to clean things up. This is where Longshot and Smellerbee were going to step in.

"Hey, uh, mister!" Smellerbee called awkwardly. The shop owner turned around, a smile on his face.

"How can I help you today, sir?" Smellerbee stiffened. She was about to pull out a sharp retort when Longshot put a hand on her shoulder and gave her a stern look. The Freedom Fighter sighed in defeat. She simply looked back at the slightly confused man and said "You aren't possibly looking for a couple of, um... Shopkeepers, are you?" Bee was having trouble remembering common titles for people in villages.

The old man just laughed. "Why yes, actually. This place seems to be slightly dusty. I'm glad to have people willing to work here- most turn away from its outward appearance." His yellow toothed smile closed and he turned back to a large furnish, tending to the embers keeping it warm. "As your first duty as keepers of the shop," he started. "I wish for you to... Uh... Well... Start cleaning wherever you like. This place has too many places to start. Well, you two boys have fun!"

Once again, Longshot stopped Smellerbee from smacking back at his words with an insult. The old man didn't notice, just turned away and murmured "Ah, to be young again." He then chuckled to himself as his two new employees walked-or in Smellerbee's case, stalked- over to the other side of the shop.

"I guess we start here," Bee sighed as she grabbed a broom. Longshot grabbed one as well, then helped Smellerbee sweep huge piles of dust and dirt from the floors of the bakery and to the outside. The archer caught his companion muttering under her breath incoherently a couple of times, probably about how many times she'd been mistaken for a boy in the past week. Longshot smiled inwardly, amused.

The day was not kind to them. Smellerbee and Longshot slaved away at the shop interior, sanding down the floor and tearing off the wallpaper. All the while, encouraging shouts came from the shop owner. These got especially irritating for the hot-headed girl Longshot worked beside as the old man constantly and ignorantly referred to her as a boy. However, Longshot tried to calm her down each time, giving her stern looks that she read to say "Calm down.", "Don't _kill_ the guy." and "Careful- remember what happened to Jet."

That last one made Smellerbee forget her anger at the man altogether, and was filled with something else- anger towards Jet. She started muttering again, and Longshot guessed it wasn't the same reason as before.

The bakery stayed open well passed midday, longer than one would expect of a place that served mostly breakfast goods. When it did close, the duo were equally exhausted, having cleaned more than ever before. "That was worse," Smellerbee started. "Than the time you guys made me do the dishes since I shoved Sneers off the tree."

Longshot turned to her. _Well, I suppose, you _did _shove him off of a tree. It's not like he was going to laugh it off. _

Smellerbee snorted. "He deserved it. That's what you get when you prevent me from retrieving my throwing knives."

Saying goodbye to the old man, he gave them each a few coins for their troubles, and a leftover slice of the carrot cake he so carefully baked just hours ago. They thanked him and stepped out of the shop into the late afternoon light. The two Freedom Fighters made their way back home in the same fashion they had traveled to get to the shop- slowly. When they finally made it back to the apartment, they collapsed dramatically and simultaneously into the floor. Longshot took out the cake and split it with Smellerbee. It had been an an exceptionally long time since either had even laid eyes on such a delicacy, and both wolfed it down hungrily-but not before Smellerbee tried to stab it, finding out it was much too soft and breakable to stab at. Reluctantly forgetting her ritual, she started to eat.

As the sun began to set, they collected their coins in a small jar they found in the back alley and placed it on the one table that stood in the main room. Making their ways back into the room, Smellerbee shed her armor and Longshot dropped his hat on the floor again. The room engulfed in darkness as Longshot blew out a candle, and sleep consumed them both.

The next few days passed uneventfully. Longshot and Smellerbee headed off to work each morning only to return ready to go to bed. As they had previously lived in a treehouse that stood precariously high up in branches of very thick trees, neither was a very heavy sleeper, and the sounds of the city kept them awake at night. Only when they were truly exhausted could they fall straight to sleep.

One morning, the man they worked for turned them away. "You two obviously need a break from all this work. I can see it in your dull eyes!" He exclaimed. Neither Smellerbee or Longshot had looked in a mirror lately, and figured they probably looked as dead as they felt. They gladly accepted the break, already heading for the exit of the bakery.

They stepped out of the shop and into a dark alley, not knowing what to do. They faced the streets, by this time of day busy with life. Turning, Smellerbee was confronted by four poorly-dressed men, all either holding knives or swords. Smellerbee nudged Longshot who turned around, noticing the thugs. Unarmed, Longshot raised his arms in surrender. Smellerbee stood her ground, not even moving to acquire a fighting stance, simply crossing her arms defiantly over her chest. One of the men, probably the leader, stepped forward, pointing a blade at the girl's throat. Smellerbee didn't even blink.

"Give us your money, son, and no one gets hurt." Longshot moved to stop Smellerbee from blowing up at the man, but she seemed to have herself under control. Unfazed by the sword to her throat, Bee smirked. "That would make it so much less fun." With that she pulled a dagger and slid the blade's angle sideways. Smellerbee punched the man's rotated shoulder and kicked him in the crook of his leg, making his knees buckle.

The next man came at her with his blade and Bee ducked under his swipe. Longshot helped her, swiping at his feet while his fighting partner bashed the thief over the head with the hilt of her dagger. He crumbled to the ground as the last two men charged. Longshot noted the leader beginning to stand up in the corner of his eye. Smellerbee kicked her opponent in the chin and slammed his head into a wall. She turned and helped finish off Longshot's enemy. Once the three of them were unconscious, the duo turned to the now-standing leader. He held his swords tightly. Charging, he aimed his blade at Smellerbee's face. The girl leaned out of the way, the blade just grazing her cheek. Longshot kicked his knee and Smellerbee kicked his chest. The man landed on his back, backing away from the two. Smellerbee held her dagger at his stomach, getting ready to carve out his intestines. About to stab, she was stopped by Longshot, who gave her a disapproving shake of his head. Disappointed, Smellerbee sheathed her blade and stood over the thief again. She raised a fist. "Oh," she started. "And I'm a _girl_." She slammed her fist into his jaw, knocking him out cold.

Dusting her hands off, Smellerbee turned to Longshot. "Shall we?" She asked, starting away from the scene. Longshot followed, ready to collapse with exhaustion.

The duo made their way back to their appartment, Smellerbee crashing onto the floor dramatically once they made it inside. She rolled over on her back and folded her arms behind her head. "_That_," she began. "Was the most fun I've had in a while. How about you, Longshot?" She turned towards the archer who was beginning to sit down beside her, propping herself up on an elbow. Longshot nodded and stretched his back, the bones popping around in place. He lay down on his back, perpendicular to Smellerbee. They lay that way for a while, wondering about what they should do in their free time. Then Smellerbee sat up. "Jet," she murmured. The dagger-wielding girl turned to her archer friend. "We need to find him, Longshot! It's been a week and we haven't heard of anything on him..." She trailed off, feeling bad for having forgotten about her leader.

Longshot sat up as well, looking equally concerned. He and Smellerbee stood. Longshot grabbed his bow and quiver- after the attempted assault in the alley, he realized the lower ring of Ba Sing Se wasn't as safe as it was made out to be.

The pair exited the apartment, not bothering to lock the door. They headed out onto the streets, weaving through the crowds and passing fruit stands. The afternoon sun was beating down on the unfortunate civilians below, Longshot and Smellerbee turned into a shaded area. They stood for a moment, relishing the cooler temperature, until they heard a few familiar voices nearby.

"We can take the train out to the wall, but then we'll have to walk." That was that Water Tribe kid that Smellerbee and Longshot had met back in the forest, wasn't it?

A higher, happier voice replies "Don't worry, on the way back, we'll be flying!" The Avatar?

The next voice, that of a young girl, was unfamiliar. "We're _finally_ leaving Ba Sing Se! Worst... City... Ever!"

Smellerbee and Longshot exchanged a glance, then turned the next corner in the street.

"Jet!" Smellerbee cried in astonishment. And sure enough, in an almost empty street with the Avatar and his friends, stood the Freedom Fighter's one and only leader.


	8. Metal Box Memories

The Lost Tales of Avatar

_8_

_Book 2_

_Metal Box Memories_

"Hello? Mom? Anyone home?" The blind earthbending master froze as sudden realization hit her- her mother wasn't here. She had walked right into a trap.

As Toph Beifong slid into a fighting stance, trying to find the enemy with her seismic sense, two parts of a large, metal box surrounded her, trapping her in a small metal cell.

"Hey!" Toph's voice shook as she cried out indignantly. "Who do you think you're dealing with?!"

The girl froze, eyes widening in horror as she heard the voice behind the reply. "One loudmouth little brat who strayed too far from home."

Toph didn't say anything as she felt the box she was in being carried somewhere and loaded onto a cart. She was shocked and terrified. Xin Fu and Master Yu had come for her. Not only that, they had tricked her, and she had let her hopefulness for her parents acceptance get in the way of all feelings of suspicion.

When the sounds of chains wrapping around the box in a careful manner brought her back to her senses, Toph slammed her fists into the side of the crate, demanding to be let out. There was no reply to her angry call, but she fell onto the wall in front of her as the cart her box sat on pitched forward.

Toph stood in the box, leaning forward with her arms propped up against the side of it. Her forehead fell against the metal, the air already becoming humid inside the stifling box. Her thoughts drifted to her friends. She wondered what they were doing, or if they would ever notice her absence. _Eventually_, Toph thought to herself reassuringly, _they would know something's up. They'll figure it out. I don't have forever, though..._

Her thoughts wandered further and further, until they reached the darkest reserves of her mind. There, the subject of Toph's parents was discovered. She had buried them, pushing them away until they were little more than a wisp of a memory.

Toph was an earthbender. It was her nature to deal with problems head first. This was the one thing she couldn't do- her weakness. She didn't hate her parents, but she told herself she did. There were good memories of her and her parents, but they all involved Aang and Katara and Sokka. Never had she tried to make a happy memory with just them.

Toph tried to ignore these thoughts. She tried to drown them once again in the dark waters of her mind, but it didn't work. All throughout the ride, she thought of them. They conquered her subconscious, and she was too weak to fight them back.

_They want me to be perfect_. Toph thought bitterly. _They want me to be everything they hoped, everything I'm not._ The blind girl slammed a fist into the metal wall of the box. No one would be here to save her. She knew that. This time it was hopeless, even if the first time she had been trying to get back to the very people she was so desperately avoiding now.

Toph stood, leaning backwards against the wall of the box, arms crossed, eyes closed and brows furrowed with a mixture of anger and frustration.

The cart moved along for a while, and Xin Fu and Master Yu began to bicker.

"I believe we need to go right!" He shouted insistently. Suddenly, the cart jerked to a halt and Toph took a step forward to balance herself, eyes snapping open. "What are you taking about?!" She heard Xin Fu argue. "The Beifong estate's this way!" Master Yu only replied with finality. "I'm quite certain you're mistaken."

Both shut up as Toph banged her fists against the cell wall. "Hey! Can you two old ladies quit your bickering for a second? I have to go to the bathroom!"

Master Yu replied hesitantly as Toph heard the jingling of keys. "Oh... Okay. But make it quick!" The earthbending master almost laughed out loud at how gullible her "Master" could be. She could play him like a puppet. Then, Xin Fu intervened. "What's wrong with you?!" He sounded slightly exasperated.

"Oh! Very sneaky, Toph!" Realization peered through Master Yu's annoying voice. "Nice try," this time, it was just a taunting tone. "But you can't trick me!"

Furious with Xin Fu for ruining her plot, Toph yelled out "Let me out of here so I can kick _both_ of your _butts_!" She slammed her fists against the metal a few more times.

"Quit your banging!" Came a reply from Xin Fu. Toph edged away from the voice slightly nervously as he punched the box himself. "You might _think_ you're the greatest earthbender in the world, but even _you_ can't bend _metal_."

As the wagon started off again, Toph determinedly lay a palm on the wall in front of her.

The girl drew in a breath quietly. She stood that way for the longest time, reading the vibrations in the metal. They were choppy, as if stopped by a substance of another form.

Toph closed her eyes, the nothingness she saw unchanging. She put her other palm on the metal box as well, focusing solely on the metal and everything she knew about it.

Metal. The one thing she knew to be more stubborn than earth. But then, metal was earth, wasn't it? It was simply a specific part of the earth that had been refined into something else. But nothing that came from something else could be purely that. Metal could not be purely metal without earth remaining a part of it. This being said, metal and earth stood together in front of her.

Even _she_ couldn't bend metal, they said. She would show them. She would make them regret the day they put the idea in her head. Toph Beifong _was_ the greatest earthbender in the world, and one metal box was not going stop her.

Toph slammed the back of her hands against the wall before her, waiting for the feel of the vibrations. The once unstable and hesitant vibrations became more solid and constant as she focused harder on, not the metal itself, the earth within the metal.

She sensed them. The segments of earth. They were just in front of her, blocked by the main part- the metal. If Toph could just manipulate the earth...

Time passed slowly in the box. Toph had too much time to be left to her own thoughts.

Her parents.

The people she'd been avoiding since that fateful day... They wanted so much of her. They wanted everything they could not have. They put pressure on Toph. They expected her to be everything they has told her to be. Everything they hoped.

Twelve years. That's how long she'd suffered from the pain resulting in this pressure. It hurt all the more when she knew she could never fulfill those expectations. No matter how hard she would try, she was still the witty, sharp-tongued, dusty girl who snuck out of the house every night to show off her earthbending skills to the world.

No matter how hard they tried, they could not pressure her enough to transform her. And sometimes, Toph felt grateful for that. She wouldn't want herself any other way. If her parents were fearful enough for their delicate, fragile, helpless daughter, they'd have a really hard time finding her.

It was impossible to find someone who did not exist.

Toph drove her two fists upwards, feeling the satisfying vibrations in her feet as they collided with the ceiling of the box. Toph slid into a horse stance, simultaneously punching her fists out to her sides, hitting the walls.

Toph struck the wall in front of her once more with the backs of her hands, thoroughly sensing the impurities in the metal. She stomped her foot, punching forward once more.

The strain at moving a part of an element that had never been bent before was evident in the blind earthbender's voice. "Come on, metal... _Budge_."

Pulling her fists back, she slammed them as hard as she could into the wall before her. Finally, it dented, following her commands.

"Whoo!" Toph exclaimed, pulling her fists back in a motion of victory. "Toph, you rule!" Then she continued to slam both fists into the dent, widening it.

With every strike to the metal wall of the box, Toph felt like she was getting further and further from the person she'd been forced to be. It felt great. Her parents couldn't control her anymore. No more pressure; no more pain. She was so close- almost there. She didn't listen to the annoyed calls of Xin Fu as he yelled at her to stop banging around. She ignored Master Yu asking her a little more gently.

Right then and there, it was just Toph and The Earth.

The metal before the blind earthbending master weakened. She could feel it thinning as it stretched. Finally, Toph sliced her fingers strait down the middle, opening the box with a strange, tearing sound. She slit the metal down the middle and pushed the edges outwards. The wagon stopped as Toph escaped to the top of the rise they'd been on.

The world's first metalbender stood there while she observed the vibrations of Xin Fu and Master Yu as they ran back to where she'd escaped the box. The two men stared, astonished, at the metal prison.

"It's another one of her tricks!" Toph heard Master Yu shout with disbelief.

"There's a giant hole in the box! How's that a trick?" Xin Fu replied. Both men turned around in shock as Toph replied.

"It's not. It's the real deal!" The girl balled her fists and made to sideways archs, swinging her arms. Xin Fu and Master Yu were pushed together by two big slabs of earth. Toph then spun around, putting her back to them, leaned forwards and shoved her hands back. The rock slabs pushed the men into the metal box, and Toph leaped forward, using her metalbending to pull the two sides of the open hole closed. Then, using earthbending to give her momentum, the greatest earthbender in the world jumped up on top of the metal prison.

"I am the greatest earthbender in the world! Don't you two dunderheads ever forget it!" Toph shouted triumphantly, stomping her feet on the roof of the box. Toph leapt off of the cell, creating a crater in the earth that ended up becoming two hills that sped her across the earth and back towards Ba Sing Se.

She ran away from the box. She sped over the landscape, all the while moving further from her parents. And now, she was leaving the helpless, pitiful blind girl behind. She'd escaped the pressure. She'd escaped the pain. And now, she had her whole life ahead of her.

The Blind Bandit. The Greatest Earthbender in the world. The World's First Metalbender. All of these titles fit just one person- Toph Beifong.


End file.
